Identifying Organisms of the Great Barrier Reef

INTRODUCTION

The Great Barrier Reef is located along the northeastern coast of Australia, spanning more than 2000
km North to South across a wide range of climates. The clear, shallow, coastal water is home to a wide variety
of plants and animal species.
A dichotomous key is a tool that allows one to identify items in the natural world, such as trees,
reptiles, rocks, and fish. Keys consist of a series of choices that lead the user to the correct name of a given
item. Dichotomous means "divided into two parts", therefore, a dichotomous keys always give two choices in
each step.

PROCEDURE

Using the dichotomous key below and the images provided on the following pages, identify each species from
the Great Barrier Reef and answer the remaining activity questions. Note that there is no need to print off
the five pages with images.

Identification Key:

Step 1 The fish shape is long and skinny…..go to step 2

The fish shape is not long and skinny….. go to step 3
Step 2 The fish has pointed fins…..it is a trumpet fish
The fish has smooth fins…..it is a spotted moray eel
Step 3 The fish has both eyes on top of the head…..go to step 4
The fish has one eye on each side of the head…..then go to step 5
Step 4 The fish has long whip-like tail…..it is a spotted eagle ray
The fish has short, blunt tail…..it is a peacock flounder
Step 5 The fish has spots…..go to step 6
The fish does not have spots…..go to step 7
Step 6 The fish has chin “whiskers”…..it is a spotted goat fish
The fish does not have chin “whiskers”…..it is a band-tail puffer
Step 7 The fish has stripes…..go to step 8
The fish does not have stripes…..it is a glassy sweeper
Step 8 The fish has a v-shaped tail…..it is a squirrel fish
The fish has a blunt tail…..it is a glass-eye snapper

QUESTIONS

1. Using the dichotomous key provided, identify each of the nine species given.
2. Why is it important that the paired statements in a dichotomous key be opposites?
3. In what fields and activities in biological science would it be important to use a key to identify organisms?
Anywitganism
4. a) If you were designing a key to identify plant species, how would you decide on the order of steps?
b) What characteristics would you use?
c) Why did you choose the characteristics in (b) that you did?

waikoffe
d) For one of the characteristics, provide the choices you would use in two separate steps.

Ha
1
 Species 1

Peacock
flounder

Species 2

glassy
sweeper

2
 Species 3

trumpet fish

Species 4

glass
eye snapper

3
Species 5

spotted moray
Eel

Species 6

band tail
puffer

4
 Species 7

Spotted Species 8
eagle ray

squirrel
fish

5
Species 9

spotted

goatfish